Using washable nappies instead of disposables can create 40% less carbon emissions, a new report from the Environment Agency will say today.

Using washable nappies instead of disposables can create 40% less carbon emissions, a new report from the Environment Agency will say today.

Green charity Women's Environmental Network (Wen), which has seen the report, to be released later today, said it will say that using reusable nappies, washed in full loads, can reduce by 40% the emissions which contribute to climate change.

Biba Hartigan of WEN said: "At last, this report supports what WEN has been stating for decades - real nappies are best for the environment with 40% carbon savings to be made over disposables.

"It's easy to make a difference with a sensible washing routine. It's just common sense. And parents can save money with real nappies too."

The Environment Agency report, An Updated Lifecycle Assessment Study for Disposable and Reusable Nappies, compares the environmental impact of the disposable and washable nappies.

Wen said the report showed a good washing routine could make a huge difference between the two options. If nappies were washed in fuller loads using an energy efficient machine and were line-dried, emissions were reduced by 40%.

The benefits were even greater if washable nappies were reused for a second child.

But Wen questioned "some key assumptions" in the report, including the idea that people using washables used more nappies than those using disposables.

The charity said its own research found there was no difference in the number of nappies used.